The present invention relates generally to footwear and, more specifically, to a shoe with an interchangeable strap to allow aesthetic and functional changes to the shoe.
Footwear comes in an enormous variety of styles and designs to suit numerous functional and aesthetic goals. Fashion conscious consumers often wish to coordinate their footwear with the remainder of their attire. For example, some consumers may wish to own several pairs of very similar shoes in a variety of colors so as to color-coordinate with a variety of outfits. However, this may require the purchase of a large number of pairs of shoes, sandals, boots, and other footwear. This presents both a financial burden and difficulty in storing the footwear. In light of this, there is a need for footwear that allows easy coordination with a variety of clothing.
There have been a number of attempts to provide footwear that has changeable portions to allow alterations in the appearance and/or function of the footwear. U.S. Pat. No. 2,495,984 to Roy provides a flat sole with laces that may be used to tie a removable upper thereto. Two slots are provided in the sole, one under the toes and one under the heel. The upper also has snaps that allow it to snap to the sole to hold it in place. This design is complicated, the laces do not reliably locate the foot or define the upper, and snaps are required to locate the upper.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,491,297 to Brown provides a piece of footwear having a sole with a slot through the sole position just forward of the heel and an upper that may be tied on with the lace in cooperation with an attachment eyelet extending upwardly between the toes of the user. Again, this is a complicated design. Also, the lace that ties the upper on does not define an upper and can only operate in cooperation with the between-the-toes eyelet.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,172,330 to Kao discloses a xe2x80x9cflip-flopxe2x80x9d or thong-like sandal wherein the upper straps are detachable from the sole. Vertical holes pass from the upper surface of the sole to the lower surface and the ends of the strap engage these holes. This design does not provide for reliable attachment between the straps and the lower, the straps require a complicated design, an attachment is forced between the user""s toes, and the straps may not be easily interchanged.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,090 to Smith provides a sandal with the sole having upperwardly extending flanges with openings to receive laces. Again, this is a complicated design. Several designs have been proposed wherein a detachable upper connects to a sole using snaps or other fasteners on the sides of the soles. A representative example is U.S. Pat. No. 4,461,102 to DeVincentis. These designs are typically complicated and provide a non-aesthetic appearance.
None of the various approaches has caught on as they have been overly complicated, functioned poorly, and/or were too expensive. Therefore, there remains a need for simple footwear that allows changes in appearance.
The present invention provides improved footwear that overcomes many of the limitations of the prior art. A shoe according to the present invention, includes a sole member with an upper surface for receiving a user""s foot and a lower surface for contacting a support surface. The sole member has a first sidewall and a second sidewall that are spaced apart and extend between the upper and lower surfaces. The sole member also has a slot defined therethrough, with the slot extending between the first and second sidewalls. A strap has a pair of opposed ends and a midportion therebetween. The midportion is designed to be received in and retained by the slot. The slot also has a closure member for joining the opposed ends. When the midportion of the strap is received in the slot and the closure member joins the opposed ends, the strap and the sole cooperate to form a shoe upper for receiving the foot.